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Show RAILWAY LABOR mm law WATSON-PARKER MEASURE FIXING FIX-ING WAGES UNDER DISPUTE IN OPERATION Old Board Dissolved and Set of Mediators Medi-ators Will Be Named By President; Presi-dent; Coolidge Signs The Bill Washington.-- The Watson-Parker bill for settlement of railway labor disputes was signed Friday by Presi dent Coolidge, who said In a statement state-ment that although he would have preferred pre-ferred "a more definite declaration for the possible protection of the public," he believed there was Involved an is- uo of "first public Importance," that of encouraging an industry to adjust relations between employer and employee em-ployee without the Intervention of the government. With presidential approval of the act, the railroad labor board, in existence exist-ence for six years, was abolished and b new system provided for by the es- J tablishment of conference groups and i adjustment boards within the industry indus-try and the creation of a board of mediation, med-iation, whose five members are to be appointed by the president. If the board by conciliation falls to effoct a settlement of a dispute, provision Is made for arbitration, or, as a last step, for the appointment of an emergency board by the president to Investigate and report on the facts Involved for the information of the public. Tho members of the media- lion Doard are expected to be named In time for the senate to confirm them at the present session. The new adjustment plan, which was described by the president as providing pro-viding for "solf-government within the industry" In labor matters, had been urged by a majority of the members of the Association of Railway Executives Execu-tives and by the twenty standard railway rail-way labor unions, including the four brotherhoods, while opposition was expressed ex-pressed by a minority group of railroads rail-roads in the association, by the American Amer-ican Farm Bureau federation and other oth-er groups. Hailed by the railroads and unions favoring it as a treaty of peace, it was criticised by opponents as not sufficiently suffi-ciently protecting tile public interest. The president referred to this point in his statement. |